Over time, buildings are subjected to variety of external forces that cause stress on the building's piping system. For example, thermal expansion and contraction, random seismic shifts, and offset or misalignment of the apparatus to which pipes are connected can cause the pipes to leak or break apart. Such breakages can cause large amounts of damage to the structure of the building and expose building occupants to a variety of hazards, such as toxic or hot gases.
To remedy this problem, a variety of solutions have been proposed—each adding a flexible pipe structure at a divided section of the pipe run. However, each proposed solution is (1) limited in the range of motion and flex or (2) takes up a large amount of space. For example, some solutions only provide flexibility in the X, Y, and Z directions. This fails to accommodate rotational movement of the pipe run, and therefore does not relieve all the stresses on piping system.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a flexible pipe loop which permits six degrees of freedom to accommodate each of the potential stresses placed on the piping system and which consumes minimal space.